KUMAZASA is a plant of the glamineae family grown in highlands in Japanese Mainland and mountains in Hokkaido. It grows robustly for 60 years pumping up the nutrition in the ground. The secret of KUMAZASA's strength is in its underground spreading roots. Therefore, it has a strong life power to survive a snowy winter season. KUMAZASA is a well-known plant for bears to eat before hibernation. Why do huge bears never fail to eat KUMAZASA before hibernation? Bears eat large amount of food before they go into hibernation but cannot excrete while a sleep. Wasteful materials would ferment extraordinarily in their intestines and poisonous substances, which would be circulated through bloods, would go around through their entire body in a ordinary condition. To prevent this , bears eat large amount of KUMAZASA before hibernation together with large amount of food. Bears know instinctively that KUMAZASA has blood purification and detoxification functions; the first thing they eat when after hibernation is KUMAZASA. "KUMA" of KUMAZASA is a white frame around the leaves that grow after they survive the winter.

Of course, not only bears but also human beings have paid attention to the effects of KUMAZASA and have taken it into our life. SASA(KUMAZASA) is used in many ways in Japanese food culture. "SASA Dango" is a dumpling wrapped with a SASA leaf and is made from glutinous rice and non-glutinous rice with Yomogi (herb) blended in it. It is first eaten as preserved food during battles in the Warring Stated Period. SASA is also used for candies and wrapping "CHIMAKI", rice dumplings. The most popular way to use SASA is as a placement mat under SUSHI. SASA is used as antiseptic for the able food and that is because SASA contains a large amount of Vitamin K and Chlorophyll whose antibacterial effects keep food from going bad.

In China, KUMAZASA is described as one of a thousand medicine in "Honzo Komoku", an ancient Chinese book of medicine written by Li, S.C. in the Ming Dynasty. It is said to be effective for asthma, phlegm removal, duodenal ulcer, kidney disease, edema, and hemostasis and has been used as ointment for inflammation and malignant tumor. KUMAZASA contains various effective ingredients for our body such as chlorophyll, multi-sugar substances, Rignin, dietary fiber and various vitamins, and an amino acid. It is proven medically effective in many ways: activating cells, increasing immunity mechanisms, healing the wounds, blood purification and blood producing, sterilizing, controlling bacteria, deodorant and anti-allergy effects.
Reference [kumazasa no himitsu」Author Kazuya Ooizumi

We have developed SASAWASHI products to take KUMAZASA’s power, whose effectiveness has been proven in history, back into our life again. SASAWASHI products are "New Daily Necessities" made from both good parts of KUMAZASA and WASHI. New technology has made us possible to create new products containing KUMAZASA, which has been treasured for a long time in traditional oriental culture.

[Apply the natural ingredients of KUMAZASA to WASHI]

SASAWASHI development team has paid attention to the antibacterial, deodorant effects of KUMAZASA. The liquid taken out from KUMAZASA leaves is the extract of KUMAZASA with natural ingredients. The extract, however, will dry up eventually and its effective functions will be lost. Therefore, we have made flakes from KUMAZA extract so that the essence of KUMAZASA can be preserved permanently and can be blended into WASHI. As a result of our continuous studies, we have achieved in putting the idea to practical use.

Using our uniquely developed method, we blend the KUMAZASA flakes with WASHI, which is slit and twisted into a yarn to create a new fabric: a birth of unique SASAWASHI fabric. SASAWASHI products made of SASAWASHI fabric have a lot of functions to contribute to people’s health.
Note*:
Once taken out from the plant, KUMAZASA’s chlorophyll will be resolved by the sunlight in a short time and the effects will be decreased considerably. Thanks to the joint venture with Dr. Mitsuo Kimura (Dr. of Eng.), we have succeeded in developing KUMAZASA whose effects cannot be resolved by the sunlight and in blending it with WASHI (Patent Pending).

At the same time, we have developed producing durable, washable WASHI thanks to the recent technology. The following is how to make SASAWASHI using the combined technology.